A Monster's Redemption
by sword-of-kusanagi
Summary: She was the first one he met before he got lost on his path of darkness, and she was going to be the first one he'd reunite with when he found his way back. SasuSaku. AU.


A dark figure stood in the corner of a room, cowering over his prey. The echoes of long gone screams whispered into his ears, but he paid no attention. Exhilaration rushed through his veins as he watched his victims quiver with terror.

_ A man. A husband. A father. His cold hand gripped his bleeding stomach at the place where a gun's bullet had rocketed into. His face was contorted with pain and discomfort, and it would forever remain that way, for he was already gone. His soul had already left him. _

_ A woman held her newborn baby protectively as she attempted to block her husband's corpse from the monster that stood before her. Her whole body was trembling, but her face was set and determined. Burning anger rolled down her cheeks in the form of dripping wet sadness. _

_ The child glanced at his mother with ever-so-innocent crystalline eyes, and after a moment, he glanced towards the fallen body of his father. What were they doing? Were they playing a game? They were just pretending, weren't they? _

The twisted man let out a cackle upon the sight of the woman's tears. His low, taunting voice was a nightmare itself, giving off the aura of pure evil.

"You _poor, poor _thing. It was absolutely entertaining to see your husband give his life and die _just_ for you. He must've been a nice man, considering the fact that he put up quite a fight just to protect your worthless life… Don't cry now, you and your little brat will be seeing him soon enough…"

The woman's eyebrows knitted together with despair as she hugged her wide-eyed baby to her chest. Her ragged breath came out in unequal intervals as she tried to suppress her sobs. Fear was slowly beginning to possess her.

"Wh-why… _why _are you doing this to my family? We d-don't deserve this!"

The man laughed a laugh more malicious than before, letting its thunderous tone bounce off the walls.

"Silly woman, don't you understand? I'm doing this for _fun." _

The disgusted mother glowered at the cold-hearted demon through her tears. Her throat tightened painfully as she tried to speak.

"_For fun? _You enjoy w-watching other people _suffer? _You enjoy s-stealing away the people they care about_?_ Do you know how I feel right now?"

The man smirked, starting to raise his gun.

_"Haven't you ever loved anyone?" _

The words registered into the man's mind, and he froze for split second.

_Haven't…_

_You…_

_ Ever…_

_ Loved…_

_ Anyone…? _

_ Have I ever loved anyone? _

He harrumphed.

And then a gunshot sounded, followed by a high-pitched scream.

The woman fell to the floor, the taste of her last words still on her tongue. Her mouth was slightly agape, marking her face with utter surprise.

_"No. No, I haven't."_

Another gunshot.

Another life gone.

…

…

An onyx eyed man shot up in bed, breathing a little too fast to be normal. Remnants of last night's dreams played through his mind like an old film as he tried to rub the sleep from his slightly bloodshot eyes. He sat on the edge of his tattered bed, pushing his hair off of his forehead.

Screams rang in his ears.

_That woman's screams._

The man shook his head, trying to ignore the sound. Once his ears began to readjust, they caught hold of a faint whir coming from the old, tattered tube TV in the corner of the small bedroom. He turned his head to face the set, wincing a bit from the dim light that shone from its screen.

A light skinned woman on the screen was gesturing towards various parts of Japan, telling the average temperatures, and then the amount of rain expected for each area.

The man yawned, his unconcern obvious. He leaned back against the worn headboard of his bed and let his eyelids flutter close. He sighed.

After a moment or so, another voice spoke.

"We interrupt this report with a very important investigation…"

Slightly interested, he opened one eye to watch the so-called 'news.'

"A family of three has been found murdered in their home in Tokyo. The man, identified as 28-year old Tsukuda Kazuo, seems to have been shot several times in the leg, arm, and chest, and his wife, 26-year old Tsukuda Yoshie, appears to have taken a bullet to the head. Their newborn baby was shot directly in the heart. The meaning of this murder is unknown, but our investigation team is working diligently to keep you informed about this tragic event. We will find the monster that killed this innocent family."

A throbbing pain stabbed at the man's heart for a millisecond, and then disappeared, making him feel as though it had ever really existed. He shrugged it off, and stared at the screen with a blank, emotionless look on his face.

_We will find the monster that killed this innocent family._

_ We will find the monster._

_ The monster. _

…

…

A faintly hunchbacked figure paced down the crowded streets, keeping his eyes locked on the sidewalk. He reached his hand up to adjust his worn baseball cap, pulling its brim down just enough to cover his eyes.

No one seemed to notice the man as he walked past. Perhaps they believed that he was just another person.

He continued to walk down the busy street, grazing the ground with his stare, looking up on occasion. As his gaze hovered towards a heavily graffitied brick wall, he noticed several signs plastered on it. His heart skipped a beat when he saw his face on a poster that screamed _'WANTED.' _

His chapped lips parted slightly as he muttered under his breath.

_"They've already found me." _

He ripped the paper from the wall, crumpled it up, and threw it to the ground.

And as the paper tumbled away, so did he.

…

…

_A boy leaned against the outer bark of a tree near the perimeter of his school, watching his classmates filter out the door, finally going home after a long day. His face showed nothing as he observed his surroundings, and a calm air drifted around him._

_He caught sight of a few familiar faces of girls from his class, that blonde-haired girl and her pink-haired friend, the one whose name he couldn't quite remember. _

_He shrugged. He had started to look away when the pink-haired girl motioned a quick 'see you later' to her companion and wandered towards his place._

_The girl wore a pleasant smile on her face and a light blush on her cheeks. When their eyes met, she offered Sasuke a small wave. _

_Sasuke raised his eyebrows skeptically, lifting his hand half-heartedly in response. _

_Once she was standing in front of him, the girl extended a hand that was trembling ever-so-slightly. _

_"I'm H-Haruno Sakura."_

_Sasuke stared at her for a moment, having no intention of introducing himself, but her pleading sea green eyes caused guilt to swallow him, and he gave in._

_ "Uchiha Sasuke."_

_ The pink-haired girl then smiled._

_ She smiled a smile that he'd soon come to love._

_ …_

_ …_

_A young boy sprinted towards his mother as her delicate fingers grazed the bronze doorknob. He frantically shrieked protests as he propelled himself forward. His tearstained face held a frightened, desperate look that caused the atmosphere around him to break and shatter. _

_ "Kaasan, please…"_

_ The boy clung to his mother, hugging her as tightly as his little arms would allow. He buried his face in her faded blue full-length skirt with tears streaming down his face. _

_ A pained expression crossed the woman's eyes as she gazed down upon her son, whom she loved more than anyone else. His tears made her want to scream. _

_ "Sasuke, I'm so sorry. You know I have to leave. Don't worry, your father will take good care of you…"_

_ The boy bawled harder at his mother's words, finding them anything but comforting. He bit his lip in an attempt to muffle his sobs. _

_ "No, Kaasan, I won't let you go!" _

_ The woman pulled her only son into a sincere hug, whispering kind words into his ear. She kissed his cheek tenderly before pulling away, hoping he wouldn't notice her own tears. _

_ "Sweetheart, don't ever forget I love you, alright? Please ever forget that." _

_The boy began to shout again as his mother disappeared behind the black door. He yelled louder and louder, but she never turned back. Before he knew it, she was gone for good._

_"Don't leave me!" _

_…_

_…_

_Two figures stood side by side, just mere silhouettes in the night. The taller shadow turned to face the shorter one, placed his hand on his shoulder, and spoke quietly._

_"I know how you feel about me…"_

_The younger boy remained quiet, a frown sliding onto his blank face. He focused his gaze away from his brother, as if attempting to ignore him._

_"Sasuke…"_

_The blue-black haired boy clenched his fist, still refusing to reply. His semi-sadness was masked by anger that was threatening to burn his surroundings to ashes._

_"Tousan loves you more than me. He's only proud of you." _

_It was the older sibling's turn to say nothing. He glanced at his brother with questioning eyes that swirled with concern, and then turned around so that his back faced him. _

_"Niisan."_

_Itachi, with his back still turned against his brother, let out a sigh, as if he knew exactly what was coming next. _

_"Yes?"_

_The younger Uchiha paused, seeming to be thinking his words over._

_"I don't hate you."_

_His brother raised his eyebrows, slightly surprised. _

_"That's good, Sasuke, I'm g-"_

_"But it's all your fault that Kaasan left." _

_ Itachi stared at his brother, who was now sitting on the blanket of moonlight that had been laid on the ground. He frowned. _

_"I know…_

_…That's why I'm leaving too."_

_…_

_…_

_A teenage boy kneeled on soft grass, bending over a gray speckled headstone. His hands balled up into fists as his face twisted with agony. _

_"Tousan…" _

_He extended his hand to trace his father's name on the gravestone, but then retracted it quickly. The stone was like ice. It sent shivers up his spine. _

_He thought of the call he received from the doctor at the hospital who had told him his father had been in a car crash and was in critical condition. He remembered himself holding his father's hand as a tube delivered oxygen up his nose. That was all that had been keeping him alive._

_He remembered the beeping noise of the heart monitor slowing, slowing, slowing, until finally, it came to a stop. He remembered screaming at the doctor, screaming, "Why didn't you save him?" over and over. _

_He remembered his father's last words. _

_"Take care of yourself, Sasuke." _

_Rain drizzled upon the grave, but the skies were free of clouds. _

_…_

_…_

_A boy and a girl sat beside each other, listening to the music of a rushing creek that was positioned at the midpoint between their houses. It felt as though it had been hours since someone last spoke._

_"Sasuke-kun…"_

_Sasuke's gaze was set on a spot far away, and his mind seemed to be elsewhere. But Sakura didn't mind; she was used to it._

_"Sasuke-kun, I'm sorry about what happened to your family."_

_Sasuke's voice was angry when his words escaped, but the resentment wasn't directed towards her._

_"It just… fell apart."_

_Sakura, whose keen ears could hear the sadness laced into his voice, reached for his hand, and for once, Sasuke let her._

_"But you have me, Sasuke-kun. You'll always have me."_

_The Uchiha frowned. _

_This was the first time Sakura's words had failed to comfort him._

_…_

_…_

A pair of midnight black eyes searched for the clock on the wall of the darkened room. They watched as the thinnest arm ticked past the number twelve.

He stood up, pulled on his charcoal trench coat, and faded into the night.

He sauntered down the almost-empty street, walking only where the shadows hid, to avoid any pedestrian's sight. A car drove by, making the shadows diminish momentarily. Its tires made sloshing noises as they ran over remains of that morning's showers.

The man walked on, trying to find the exit of his labyrinth of thoughts.

_We will find the monster that killed this innocent family._

_ We will find the monster._

_ The monster. _

He shook his head.

He'd show them.

…

…

The man glared at the silver handle of the glass door in front of him, hesitating to reach out and grasp it. He frowned, hating himself more with each breath. All his life, he had done wrong. This was the one time he could do something right to cleanse himself of those bloody sins. And yet, he hesitated.

The man inhaled and exhaled, as if to prepare himself, and then pushed open the door to an elegant, sophisticated building. His ears were almost oblivious to the light tinkling noise that sounded over his head. He paced towards the reception desk, his footsteps echoing on the snow white tile floor.

He cleared his throat as he stood before the woman at the desk, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

The woman looked up and offered him a polite smile. When her mind comprehended the face of the person before her, a sliver of shock appeared on her face, but it lasted for only a millisecond, and then disappeared.

"How may I help you?"

The man, refusing to look the woman in the eye, stared at her glimmering badge. He squinted, but his impaired vision made it difficult to read her name. When he opened his mouth to speak, his voice came out as gruff, but you could _almost _hear his hidden confusion.

"I'm here…"

He swallowed.

"To turn myself in."

The man then glanced up and met the woman's eyes, eyes that were so sincere, so comforting, so familiarly _sea green_. And then his heart fell to the floor and shattered into a million pieces.


End file.
